Jiri Prochazka was the big winner when the UFC Vegas 25 bonuses were announced following Saturday night’s fights at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Not only did Prochazka win his main event bout opposite Dominick Reyes, earning a light heavyweight title shot, he also won $100,000 in bonus money.
Fight of the Night: Dominick Reyes vs. Jiri Prochazka
The UFC Vegas 25 main event lasted less than 10 minutes, but it was packed with action. Yes, Prochazka got the victory with a stunning combination of elbows that ended with a spinning back elbow knockout, but that’s not to discount Dominick Reyes’s performance.
Reyes had several moments throughout the fight that he stunned Prochazka, marking up the Czech fighter’s face, and nearly finishing him with a guillotine choke. It’s just that Prochazka wasn’t to be denied, his creativity shining in the Octagon.
Performance of the Night: Jiri Prochazka
Prochazka is a former Rizin FF light heavyweight champion, but it is his back-to-back knockouts of former title contenders Reyes and Volkan Oezdemir that put him next up for a shot at the UFC belt.
Though he was rocked several times from punch combinations and another time from a brutal upkick, Prochazka kept plowing forward. After backing Reyes up to the fence, he unloaded with several elbows, culminating in a cutting right elbow that set up the spinning back elbow knockout.
Performance of the Night: Giga Chikadze
Featherweight Giga Chikadze has been stellar in his run up the UFC’s 145-pound division, but scored his most impressive victory on Saturday night when he stopped Cub Swanson.
It only took him 1:03 to find Swanson’s liver with his patented Giga Kick. Though he had to follow up with a few punches to force the referee to stop the fight, the fight was really over when Chikadze landed the liver kick, which sent Swanson to his knees.
(Photos courtesy of UFC)
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UFC Vegas 25 bonuses
- Fight of the Night: Dominick Reyes vs. Jiri Prochazka
- Performance of the Night: Jiri Prochazka
- Performance of the Night: Giga Chikadze
UFC Vegas 25 bonuses: Jiri Prochazka pockets extra $100,000
